Ocean Acoustic Data Collection - Community-Based Methods for Meeting Community Needs

Coastal marine environments are some of the most bio-rich ecosystems on earth, providing food and livelihoods for many coastal community members. However, the threats of anthropogenic and climate stressors on coastal environments highlight the need for robust monitoring to inform current and future environmental stewardship decisions. While traditional oceanographic sampling is typically done from a research vessel, this is often costly and logistically difficult for scientists and coastal communities alike. Ocean Networks Canada (ONC) in partnership with communities along Canada’s western, eastern, and Arctic coasts have continued to advance a number of solutions for long-term marine monitoring [1]. Ocean Sonics has enabled these programs as a collaborator, technology provider, and information resource [2]. Selecting which solutions to use and how to integrate them in to existing programs requires careful attention. This technical paper aims to outline many of the possible solutions and the considerations that go in to selecting ones that maximize benefits to the communities Ocean Sonics designs and manufactures the “icListen”, the world’s first smart digital hydrophone [3]. These hydrophones are deployed across ONC’s network of cabled underwater observatories for long-term ocean acoustic monitoring; they are also deployed as autonomous underwater moorings and used to collect data from boats and surface buoys. Each of the above data collection methods have their advantages and disadvantages when serving the needs of coastal communities. ONC currently supports year-round, real-time data collection from hydrophones deployed on eight different cabled “Community Observatory” sites across the country in addition to hydrophones located on ONC’s larger VENUS and NEPTUNE observatories. Through use of a cabled observatory, the Tsleil-Waututh Nation [4] is working with ONC and others to collect acoustic data in Burrard Inlet, right next to Canada’s largest port. Meanwhile, the Malahat First Nation (also located on Canada’s southern west coast) is an example of a community that is working with ONC and Ocean Sonics to incorporate a number of ocean acoustic monitoring methodologies in to their existing marine monitoring programs [5]. Malahat Nation aims to use boat-based and other data collection methods as a possible long-term acoustic monitoring strategy in their marine territory, with the immediate focus of identifying optimal locations for seafloor cabled observatories that can monitor whale and vessel interactions. Other communities along Canada’s three coasts are equally keen to generate and advance integrated monitoring programs that include the collection and analysis of underwater acoustic data.Here we discuss a number of underwater acoustic monitoring methods currently being considered, used, and adapted by coastal communities and how they may play a part in achieving their specific research goals, answering key questions, and informing future plans and even changes to government policy. It is crucial that the communities understand how these methods can be effectively integrated in to their other environmental monitoring efforts and that they consider their overall capacity to support acoustic data collection. Capacity, in this case, needs to include aspects such as technical and scientific expertise, available funding, people-time for data collection and administration, availability of support vessels and other equipment, and even the overall desire and willingness to partner with others. The relative presence and absence of any of these aspects will ultimately work to define which methods are feasible and to what extent service providers, such as ONC and Ocean Sonics, may to be involved. For example, both ONC and Ocean Sonics offer standardized training to help build technical and scientific expertise but depending on the overall capacity of a given community relative to the complexity of the data required to answer their questions, they will likely need additional support from ocean acousticians to analyze and interpret the data and may need more fundamental support in defining initial research questions. ONC’s broad vision includes providing knowledge and leadership that deliver solutions to society in general; community-based approaches to collecting underwater acoustic data are one of the means to support this vision. ONC’s Community-Based Monitoring and Science Services teams use subsea cabled “Community Observatories”, boat based data collection methods, autonomous moorings, vessel traffic data, and standardized training as just some of the wide spectrum of complementary tools available to them when working directly with leadership and monitoring teams in coastal communities. ONC and the communities they work with rely heavily on manufacturers and subject matter experts such as Ocean Sonics to provide technical solutions and expertise. The communities themselves are the driving force behind these monitoring efforts, providing not just the people time and resources but also the context and purpose for which the data is being collected. This paper will explore how communities, academia, NGO’s, and manufacturers can work together to build meaningful and well integrated marine monitoring programs that include ocean acoustic data